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Stanford Prison Experiment (Procedure (The 'arrest' (Prisoners…
Stanford Prison Experiment
Background
Wanted something as hard hitting & socially relevant as Milgram
Influenced by reports of
indoctrination & brain washing
of US army by Koreans
Rosenham:
Pretended to be schizophrenic & staff refused to believe they were just doing an experiment --> couldn't leave
David Jeffe:
Created a simulated prison dorm --> Zimbardo recreated - believed anyone could be evil (Milgram)
Procedure
Aims:
Investigate guards & prisoners --> guards are just as much a victims in prisons
Participants:
Ad placed for PPs to take part in a study on prison life for 2 weeks (paid), 25/75 selected - half randomly assigned as guards, half prisoners
Male college students
Gave them all
personality tests
- excluded any with aggressive personalities, a criminal record or high on any personality traits
Prisoners told some of their
civil rights
would be affected but no violence
The 'arrest'
Prisoners arrested from home (surprise) --> fingerprinted at police station & left in isolation
Blindfolded & taken to 'Stanford County Prison'
Induction: Stripped naked, searched, de-loused, given a uniform, taken to cell
The Prison
Basement of psychology department - small cells with steel barred doors
Guards used
solitary confinement in sadistic ways
Zimbardo was the prison superintendent = criticism --> should have been a passive observer
Orientation
Prisoners kept in 24/7
Guards orientated (stay ethical) --> (-) Could have led guards in the direction he wanted
Told no violence --> some still did
Uniforms
Clothing is a
reflection of identity
- military & school
Removing clothing choice - chip away from some aspects of identity
Uniform --> you are not in the th 'in-group' (out-group)
Just guards, not individuals (anonymity) & de-individuation
Guards: Uniform, stick, sunglasses (no eye-contact)
Prisoners: Smock, ID badge, no underwear (less masculine) - threat to masculinity & sexuality seen in prisoners, shackles = constant reminder
Those with war paint = far more aggressive than those who don't
A change in appearance can facilitate a change in identity
Observations
Z & PPs wrote diaries & constant video footage - Interviews with all PPs
Pen & paper tests - personality measure = large data set (qual & quant)
Every guard was abusive - 1/3 were
sadistic
- PPs = mental anguish
Some took
extra, unpaid shifts (enjoyment)
Z didnt step in - he became a 'prisoner of the experiment'
Prisoners just accepted that they needed a parole meeting to leave
PPs only talked about the experiment (no casual chat)
Impact
Wider relevance
Z campaigned for prisoner rights
Government stopped housing new prisoners with old --> rape and violence
Psychologists need to be advocates for social change
Understanding what happened in Abu Ghraib Prison
Guards condemned by military & media as
morally corrupt
- "few bad apples"
Z testified in defence of them --> Ignored
Not trained as prison guards
Volatile situation - enemies
Language barrier
Family people with children --> prisoner humiliation and physical abuse
Z - "A bad barrel of apples converting good apples bad"
Guard Sadism
2/3 days for PPs to become despondent
Forced to clean toilets with hands
No toilet breaks
Solitary confinement for no reason
David Eccleman:
Sexually degraded the prisoners - none of the other guards intervened =
Bystander effects
Extreme Effects
Power
Common theme = "It wasn't me"
Each day the guards became more sadistic & cruel - seen in diaries
Psychological Aspects of Time
Real prisoners - sense of time becomes
distorted
Institutionalisation breaks up continuity
Anonymity
Anti-social behaviour (e.g. online bullying)
Uniforms, IDs not names, standard hair cuts, mass eating & exercise
Limited possessions --> fights
They showed signs of
'learned helplessness'
- when something bad happens to you in a
random unexplained way
Contest between good men & an evil situation - situation won
Study supposed to last 2 weeks - Z's fiancé told him to stop
Guards became addicted to the power - enjoyment
Reactions
Benuazizi & Movahedi
Lack ecological validity: They're aware its fake
(-) Phenomenological sig. --> knew this isn't like prison
(-) Z's active superintendent role
Fromm:
Most sadism from one guard = promising
Haslam & Reicher:
BBC 'The Experiment'
Z designed the experiment to
get the results he wanted
- focused on tyranny = what he got
Guards' power
quickly undermined by prisoners & were intimidated
Prisoners = real ex-prisoners
SERE --> US military training exercise (abduction) --> male cadets raped females as role play of the enemy